The blockbuster Myles Garrett trade between the Cleveland Browns and Los Angeles Rams took the NFL world by storm yesterday. It was a surprise to see with the two-time Defensive Player of the Year get traded, but less shocking when you look at the Rams' offer and what makes them successful.
The Rams belong to the "F them picks" school of management, which Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons would be smart to consider. If you look at the recent first-round picks the Falcons have made, their track record is less than stellar, especially when compared to what Los Angeles did.
Ryan's Falcons are still cleaning up the mess that Terry Fontenot left behind for them, which Les Snead and the Rams have taken advantage of time and again. It started with the abject failure that was the James Pearce Jr, trade, but a small mistake has since snowballed into something bigger.
The Falcons' misuse of first-round picks is becoming an ugly trend
It starts before Ryan or Ian Cunningham was ever in office. After a long stretch of successful first-rounders, the Falcons took Michael Penix Jr. with the eighth pick in the 2024 NFL Draft despite paying $180 million to Kirk Cousins six weeks earlier. And Penix has made just 12 underwhelming starts across two seasons and is now rehabbing a part- torn ACL. He may not even be the Week 1 starter.
Because of the Pearce trade, the Dirty Birds' 2026 first-round pick turned into the 13th overall pick, which the Rams used on Ty Simpson, giving them an heir apparent to Matthew Stafford and a potential long-term franchise quarterback that allowed them to make the Garrett trade to begin with.
Pearce was great when he was on the field as a rookie, but his immediate future is up in the air due to some legal troubles. But that's not the worst part. Because they had the 13th pick, the Rams felt comfortable dealing their 29th pick to Kansas City in exchange for All-Pro corner Trent McDuffie.
If the Falcons had pick 13 they could've used it on some immediate roster upgrades, but Fontenot mortgaged it to go all-in on trying to save his job, which failed miserably. And this is a lesson they can afford to learn under a new regime: if you're trading a first-round pick, make sure the value is worth it.
Cunningham is calling the shots, so while he, Kevin Stefanski, and Ryan are a team, Matty Ice have final sign-off on personnel decisions. So if the Falcons want this trend of unsuccessful draft picks is one that needs to rear its ugly head, Ryan should start by hitting on the picks you're supposed to.
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